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Top Tips to Increase the Rental Value of Your Property

As experienced letting agents in Glasgow, Western Lettings are experts in the rental property market. Here are some of their top tips to help landlords maximise their rental income.

Most landlords want to achieve the best possible rental income from their property but sometimes struggle to attract new tenants at the price they would like. As experienced letting agents in Glasgow we know the rental market extremely well and can advise and help our clients make the changes needed to get the best price. Here are some of our top tips:

Always make sure your property is in pristine condition from top to bottom. Give everywhere a really deep clean paying particular attention to the kitchen and bathroom areas. Bad smells and general uncleanliness are very off putting for potential tenants. Cleaning properly takes time and effort so if you are unable or don’t want to do this yourself, arrange for a professional cleaning company to do it for you.

Redecorate tired rooms with a fresh coat of paint to make them instantly brighter and cleaner looking. It is usually best to keep colours fairly neutral to appeal to the largest number of people. Similarly either replace or thoroughly clean any old flooring or dirty stained carpets.

Remove all unnecessary clutter from your property to make rooms appear as spacious as possible. In addition try to find ways of increasing the amount of free storage space. As tenants view a property they will be looking out for adequate space to hold all their own personal items. If you can, convert any nooks and crannies into usable storage areas and add shelving to any large cupboards.

It goes without saying that any damp problems should always be dealt with properly by professionals. Patch up jobs rarely work for very long and it is always much better to fix the root cause of the damp problem rather than try and disguise it. As well as damaging your property long term, dampness has a very distinctive smell which will definitely deter tenants.

If your property is furnished, make sure the quality of the furniture is up to the standard that the tenants you hope to attract would expect. Old worn out sofas or chipped wardrobes can be very off putting to potential tenants. Replacing old scruffy items with new or good quality second hand ones can be relatively inexpensive but make a big difference to the rent that can be achieved.

Adding a few carefully chosen soft furnishings e.g. contrasting cushions on the sofa, soft throws etc. and some nice lamps in the living areas can add a touch of colour and interest to a property. Just be careful to not go overboard as tenants will usually want to be able to stamp some of their own style on their new home.

If there is space, providing extras such as a dishwasher or tumble dryer etc. can be a good idea. Tenants will often be willing to pay a bit more for the convenience these items offer.

If your property is in a block of flats and it doesn’t have a communal door entry system it might be worth trying to arrange with the other flat owners to get one installed. Many people will be prepared to pay a bit more rent for the peace of mind that comes from having a security system which regulates who has access to the building.

If you are a landlord looking for help to let and manage your property we’d love to hear from you. We are an award winning letting agents in Glasgowand can guide you through the whole process from start to finish. Get in touch or give us a call on 0141 357 0436